Caws For Alarm
by Marengo227
Summary: Lucina must hide her identity from her parents, find her friends, and prevent an apocalypse, all alone. That is, until she crosses paths with a dark mage with an oddly optimistic sense of nihilism, quickly finding herself drawn to him, like a moth to a flame. When she finally reveals herself two years later, she's still keeping one last secret: they've fallen for each other.
1. A Not-So Cawsual Meeting

_**Then**_

White spots. Drops of rain hitting her head, like arrows falling from the sky. Violent turbulence, the kind that makes her feel sick. A warm sun reminding her of better times. An equally warm smile that hides crooked fangs. Mud that turns into dirt, then moistens back to mud again. White spots again.

Lucina's eyes opened, and she immediately took note of a few things. First, her dreams were still strangely vivid, yet devoid of any real meaning; this frustrated her to no end. Second, her head felt like it was struck by lightning. Third, and most importantly, she'd been tied up against a tree. Testing the strength of her bindings, she found that they were too tough and too tight to simply wriggle or break out of.

If she wasn't tied up, she'd punch herself for being so careless. Some nearby townspeople had warned her of the bandit presence in these woods, but after taking down a few, she thought she'd be safe enough to sleep there. Of course, the second she closed her eyes, someone ran up to her and hit her over the back of her head with a club before she could get to her feet.

The campfire she had previously set up was still going, with four men gathered around it. Lucina had always tried to avoid judging people by their covers – Severa had taught her how much of a mistake that was – but these men looked so much like brigands that it was almost comical. Burly physiques, plenty of scars, loud voices, and ugly expressions. Then again, she supposed all of those qualities could also be attributed to Vaike, and he had quite the heart of gold.

One of them noticed that she was no longer unconscious, and in seconds all their gazes were turned to her. If looks could kill, half of them would be torturing her and the other half would…actually, she figured it was best not to attempt to picture what those two were thinking, with gazes as lecherous as theirs. "Well, lookie here! Up from your nap, are you?" One of them shouted, his loud voice piercing her ears.

"Let's be civil about this." Lucina began, keeping her voice steady in order to avoid sounding too desperate, or even worse, too cocky. "I'm sure there's something you want, and I'm sure I can provide it. There's no need to do anything brash." One benefit to this world, as opposed to hers, was that even brigands and bandits were far more agreeable when the world wasn't ending.

Another one piped up. "Now who said we was gonna do anything brash?" Now he was one who certainly didn't care about how cocky he looked. "We just wanna…er…boss, what're we doing with her again?" He looked up to the biggest one of the bunch, a man who towered over the others. His expression was as stiff as his posture, his eyes unreadable.

The leader spoke. "She ain't worth killing, that's for sure. We'll either sell her or keep her. Let's put it to a vote. Sell?" He and one of the others raised their hands. "Alright. Keep?" The other two with the lecherous gazes raised their hands. "Well then, I suppose we'll have to find some kind of tiebreaker."

The whole situation was rather bizarre. What kind of bandits voted on how they'd treat their prisoners? The group began to argue rather intensely on how they'd solve the tie. One of them suggested just voting over and over again until something changed. Another thought that each side should choose a representative, which would then fight with the other side's until one of them died. The debate kept going until the shrill sound of a crow's caw interrupted all of them. Lucina tilted her head back, seeing it resting on the branch of the tree above her.

"That's it!" One of the brigands exclaimed. "Alright, if that crow stays there for a minute, then we sell her. If it leaves before that, we keep her. How's that sound?" There was murmuring through the group before they all nodded, turning their attention to the bird, watching it in absolute silence.

Oh gods, she was doomed. That was all she could think about as they waited for the crow to do something. She had to get out before her fate was decided, she had to break from her bonds and grab Falchion and strike each and every one of them down. She could even see it resting near the fire, taunting her. As she looked at it, she realized there was another crow pecking at the blade.

Her gaze turned back to the crow above her, only for her to realize it was no longer alone. A couple more crows had joined it, all letting out the occasional shrill caw. "Wait, which one was the one we were supposed to keep track of?" One of the brigands asked, getting shrugs in response from the others.

"Seems like keeping track is a lost _caws_!" An unfamiliar voice rung out, grabbing everyone's attention and sending their gazes to the campfire, where a young man was standing. That was about all Lucina could gather from him, as the low light of the fire and the dozen crows flying around him kept his appearance well-hidden. "Maybe instead of selling or keeping her, you should just _murder_ her instead!" He sounded uncomfortably giddy, his voice high-pitched and bubbly.

"Hey, back off buddy!" One of the brigands shouted, grabbing his axe from his belt and swinging it around in an attempt to intimidate the stranger. "This ain't your business, got it? Scram before I bash your head in."

The figure seemed to find that rather amusing, if his chuckle was any indication. "I think I should stick around! Birds of a feather, and all that. Say, you wouldn't happen to have any leftover food, would you? I'm feeling pretty _peck_ ish!"

The brigand was growing more frustrated by the second. "Oh, so you're a funny guy, huh? I hate funny guys." He began to approach the figure, but before he could get too close, some of the crows flying around him changed their direction, gliding to the brigand. They began to peck and claw at him, sending him back a few steps as he cried out in panic, waving his hands around in a vain attempt to shoo them away. The others took this as a sign to draw their weapons and charge, a tactic which quickly proved to be foolish as they all became swarmed by crows.

With the murder of crows now focused on the brigands, Lucina was finally able to get a good look at the man. He was surprisingly young, most certainly no older than she was. It was easy to tell he was Plegian due to his slightly tanned skin, though, it seemed he had been out of the desert long enough for his skin to begin to pale. His outfit cemented the fact, as it was adorned with the colors and insignia commonly worn by Plegian dark mages. She couldn't get a good look at his eyes, seeing how they looked as if they were almost closed, but his white hair was plain as day.

His gaze shifting to Lucina, he began to walk over to her, signaling her to start struggling more than she had previously. Seeing this, he let out a giggle, unsheathing a dagger from his belt. No, she couldn't die here, she couldn't! She had to save everyone, she had to find her friends, she had to make sure everybody was safe!

She was snapped out of her panic by the sound of snapping rope as her bindings fell to the ground. The man gave her a wide smile, offering a hand. "Nice to meetcha!" She didn't take it, opting to stand up on her own instead. Just as she regained stable footing, one of the brigands charged at him from behind, a heavy axe raised with the intent to kill. Instinct sent Lucina charging into the Plegian, the axe swinging just above her head and chopping off a few strands of her hair.

Hitting the ground knocked the air out of both of them, though the man broke out into a giggle regardless. Lucina, meanwhile, sprang up to her feet, digging her heels into the dirt, waiting for the brigand to make a move. He swung at her, his movement sloppy and predictable, allowing her to duck under his swing and grab his arm bending it back until she heard a loud _crack!_ He screamed in pain, his grip on his axe loose enough for her to yank it from his hand and swing back, taking him down in one blow. The other three brigands had finally shooed away the rest of the crows and were now staring intensely at her and the fresh corpse of one of their comrades.

Lucina wasted no time in running to Falchion, grabbing it and turning to face the three of them. The weight and feel of it was perfectly natural, as if it were an extension of her limbs. The first of them ran at her, his sword raised over her head. Terrible form, but she knew if connected, she'd be too busy trying to reattach her arm to her shoulder to keep fighting. Not wanting to risk a failed dodge, she thrust Falchion in an attempt to strike first. It worked, the tip of the blade sinking into his gut. He quickly yanked his body back, grunting in pain as blood poured down from his stomach. Lucina stifled a growl as she realized he wasn't down for the count just yet.

The leader and his last unharmed crony ran at her, carrying a gigantic axe and rusted spear, respectively. She ran at the one with the spear, swinging upwards at the weapon to throw off his balance. Once that was achieved, she grabbed him by the waist and spun him around just in time for him to take the brunt of the leader's attack. The sound that the hit made was more than enough to confirm that he wasn't getting back up from that.

She sent the corpse at the leader, distracting him long enough for her to thrust Falchion through the dead man's back and out the other end, gouging itself deep into the leader's side. Knowing a swing would be impossible with the body making it exponentially more difficult, she instead opted to twist the double-edged blade around.

Whatever adrenaline that was keeping the leader on his feet wasn't enough anymore, and he fell to his knees as Lucina yanked Falchion away, letting the dead brigand collapse in front of him. Her shoulders heaving up and down with every breath, she raised her weapon for a killing blow, but hesitated when she saw the fear in his eyes. "F-fine, you win!" He shouted, holding his hands up. "Look, you've won. You beat us. No need to end any more lives than necessary, right?"

She sighed, lowering her blade. She despised men like him, but the injuries she dealt were more than enough to ensure he'd never be able to continue life as a brigand. Just as she breathed in a sigh of relief, strong arms wrapped around her from behind. Panic shot up every nerve in her body as she remembered the first brigand, the one she never took down. How could she have been so clueless!?

The leader got up in spite of his wound, ready to swing his axe one last time. Just as he was about to end her, a bolt of lightning shot through his neck, killing him before he even hit the ground. Lucina didn't waste the opportunity, elbowing the man grabbing her right in his wound, making him stumble back, letting go of her. She spun around, swinging Falchion at the same time, hitting him right in the side of his chest. This time, he went down for good.

Adrenaline began to fade, and Lucina found herself digging Falchion into the ground, using it as support to prevent herself from collapsing onto the grass below her. Looking up, she saw that white-haired man smiling down at her, holding his hand out once again. This time, she accepted his offer, letting him pull her up to her feet. She was still unsteady, but she wasn't going to fall this time. "You really did a number on those guys, didn't you?" He asked, his voice implying he found it rather impressive.

"They would have cut me down if it wasn't for your intervention." Lucina paused, looking at him cautiously. "That _was_ your thunder spell that hit him, right?" She wasn't too sure if she could actually trust this man yet, though he had helped her more than once.

"Yup! Oh man, the look on his face was priceless! He was all, 'Grr, growl, I'm gonna chop ya in two!' and then I got him, and he was like, 'Oh no, Henry got me! I should've been paying more attention!'" Another laugh escaped his lips for a few seconds. "Oh right, that's my name. Henry! Pleasure to make your acquaintance!"

"It's…nice…to meet you, Henry. My name is Luci—" She stopped herself, quickly correcting her answer. "Marth. Thank you for rescuing me."

"Well, Lucimarth, it was no trouble at all! I just happened to be in the area, and those guys looked like the kind of people nobody would miss, so I thought, why not? Of course, _you_ look like the kind of person that people would miss, so I didn't hurt you." His reasoning was certainly strange, but if it meant Lucina wasn't going to die tonight, she was fine with it.

"It's, uh, just Marth. And still, I must thank you. I would have certainly perished if you hadn't come to my aid."

"Well, just Marth, you probably wouldn't have died. Nah, they would've sold you on a slave market to some corrupt noble. Then you'd have to live as his slave forever!" He paused, putting a thumb to his chin. "Actually, that would be a lot worse. So yeah, I guess I did do you a favor!"

Henry was certainly making Lucina nervous with how casually he talked about all sorts of awful things. She had gotten used to all sorts of awful things in the future, but she never had a _smile_ when she discussed them. Still, she could tell he wasn't the type to enjoy doing them. He just seemed easily excitable, and more than a little naïve. "What you did with those crows was amazing. How did you do that?"

"Huh?" Henry looked confused. "I didn't do anything. They just helped me out! Animals tend to really like me, after all." He held out a finger, and in no time at all a crow had perched itself on it, letting out a loud caw. "See? Aw, isn't he just the cutest? Aren't you, little guy?" He gave the bird a few scratches on the head before letting it fly off.

The bizarreness of Henry only was heightened by this, but Lucina tried not to judge too hastily. First impressions were, in her experience, often nothing like what a person actually was. "Ah, yes. Very…very cute." Still, it was rather hard for her to feign enthusiasm. She cleared her throat. "Well, I must be on my way. Clearly, resting in these woods is a mistake, so I'd best find a safer place of shelter. Farewell." She turned around and began to walk away, only to hear Henry's footsteps behind her indicating he was following her. "Do you…need something?"

"Nope!" He cheerfully exclaimed, continuing to follow behind her. "Just thought it might be safer for the both of us if we stick together until we're out of here." He made a fair point; they had each saved the other's life, so it would be good to stay close until they were away from danger. Only that long, however. Lucina couldn't afford to get distracted by strangers. She had to continue her mission.

 _ **Now**_

Father and mother know who Lucina is now. They _know._ Gods, even after she's had her long conversation with them, it still doesn't feel entirely real. It's as if she's dreaming, and she's going to wake up any second now. She's not sure if she wants to wake up or not. They had been so accepting, so quick to believe her, to comfort her. Her heart lights up just from her thinking about it.

They know about her real identity. They know that there are other time travelers like her somewhere out there. They know why she's here, they know about the tragedy that she seeks to prevent. There's one thing, however, that they don't know, and she'll be damned if they're going to find out anytime soon.

Walking around the remains of the battle, Lucina sees piles of ash sitting next to weapons. Risen remains. There had been so many of them that she thought at one point that she was going to drown in a swarm of the monsters. Unfortunately for her, the large numbers of Risen also meant that she was easily separated from her traveling companion. Where in Naga's name _is_ he?

She spots someone walking around nearby with long black hair. If her memory serves her correctly, that woman is Tharja, Noire's mother. She can't tell if she's more or less frightening as a younger woman. Still, she has no choice but to approach her. "H-hello." Lucina curses herself for being unable to prevent herself from stammering.

Tharja turns around, giving her a somewhat curious, somewhat cold look. "Oh, hello. You're the Exalt's daughter, right?" Word travels fast among the Shepherds, apparently. She nods in confirmation. "Right, right. Glad to see Robin's marriage went so well." There's an obvious pang of jealousy in the statement that Lucina chooses to ignore. "You need something?"

"Yes, actually." Okay, no stammering so far. This is good. "I was wondering if you've seen a dark mage around here? He's got white hair, and he giggles a lot. O-oh, and there's usually a few crows nearby him." Not the best description, but it's most of Henry's most noticeable qualities.

Tharja raises an eyebrow. "You know Henry?" The question comes as quite a shock to Lucina. Henry never mentioned knowing this woman.

" _You_ know Henry?" Lucina asks back, incredulously. Tharja seems to find that amusing, letting out a morose chuckle.

"I know _of_ Henry. He's got quite the reputation in Plegia, you know." A grin forms on Tharja's face. "He's known as a nightmare of a dark mage, responsible for all sorts of death and destruction. He even betrayed his country, obliterating the squad he was working with before vanishing from the face of the earth. I honestly had assumed he was dead before I saw him tonight."

"So you did see him." That's certainly a relief for Lucina, who lets out a sigh, ignoring Tharja's comments about Henry's reputation. "Do you know where he is? I've been looking for him for a while now." She gets another raised eyebrow as a response, and quickly explains. "We've traveled together for the past two years. I wanted to make sure he was alright."

Tharja clearly doesn't buy what she's saying, but she doesn't press the issue any more than she already has. Turning around, she points off to the forest. "He went that way, last I saw. No idea if he's still there." A general direction isn't a great start, but it's better than nothing. She hastily thanks Tharja before running off towards the forest, perhaps a bit too fast for her own good.

For a good while, Lucina merely wanders through the thick forest, looking high and low for Henry. "Oh, where are you…" She mutters, worried that he's run off into danger yet again. He's like a magnet for danger, and his poor self-preservation skills certainly don't help in keeping him safe.

Finally, she finds him in a small clearing, sitting on a tree stump and petting a rather affectionate wolf. She leans against a tree, watching for a short while. He says all sorts of compliments to the beast, speaking to it as if it's a pet, rather than a vicious killer. "Who's a good Wolfie? Who's a good Wolfie? That's right, you are, you are!" After a few minutes, his gaze finally drifts over to Lucina's direction, his smile only growing wider. "Alright Wolfie, it's time to go. See ya!" The wolf seems to understand him perfectly, running off into the woods.

"I will never understand how you do that." Lucina says with a chuckle, approaching the dark mage. He gets up from the stump and walks over to her, chuckling right back.

"I guess I'm just a better communicator than you are!" He jokes, giggling at his own humor. "Oh, and a better listener too. Hope that doesn't bother you."

"Oh, shut up." Her chuckle has turned into a full laugh by this point. Once the two are close enough, Lucina takes the initiative as always, pulling him close and planting a kiss on his lips. They stay like that for a few seconds, allowing her to simply lose herself in the moment for a little while longer. However, she eventually pulls away, smiling warmly at him. "If you were a better listener, you wouldn't keep running off. You had me worried sick!"

"Sorry 'bout that, Lucy!" Henry nervously rubbed the back of his head, his chuckle now much more embarrassed. "I was fighting some Risen, and then I wound up over here, and Wolfie just wouldn't stop following me until I gave him some attention! Time flies, I guess."

Pretending to be deeply offended, Lucina scoffs. "Well, I'm glad to know that you think your time is better spent with a wild animal than with me!" Still, the privacy that the situation grants them is rather nice. She knows she should be fully honest with her parents about everything, but telling them about her relationship with Henry feels like a bad idea. Too much shock too fast leads to nothing good.

So when is she supposed to tell them? Thinking about that makes her nervous. Should she let them know in a few days? A few weeks? Months? Should she just wait until the war is over to say anything? If it was possible, she wonders if she'd just never tell anyone. She knows that's not fair to Henry, and it's certainly not realistic, but it's a nice idea nonetheless.

"If it makes you feel better, I've never fallen in love with a wild animal." Henry remarks with a surprising hint of snark. He doesn't often use sarcasm, but he's surprisingly good at it. Lucina just chuckles for a brief moment before giving him another kiss, this one shorter than the first.

"C'mon. We should head back before they start looking for us. I hope you're not too opposed to working with a group." Things are certainly going to be different for the two of them now that they'll be around other people just about constantly. Henry hasn't objected to keeping their relationship a secret for the time being, but it'll be a tough secret to keep regardless.

The two of them step back from eachother before turning to head back to the others. As they do, they both stop dead in their tracks. Lucina's eyes widen in shock as a pit forms in her stomach. Ahead of her, staring in utter surprise, is her aunt Lissa. "H-how long have you—" Lucina stops, knowing full well that she's been there long enough, judging by the equally shocked expression that she has.

What should she do? Oh Gods, this wasn't supposed to happen, she was supposed to keep this under wraps until she felt it was the right time! If Aunt Lissa knows, then the first person she's going to tell is father, and then he'll tell mother, and—

She stops, taking a breath. _You have to calm down, Lucina._ She thinks to herself, staring at her aunt who, thankfully, hasn't moved yet. _You need to get ahead of this. You can get ahead of this._ She takes a deep breath. "Aunt Lissa, I can explain."

* * *

 **So, here's my first attempt at a romance-focused fic. I've never really tried to write any significant amount of romantic dialogue before, so pardon me if my first attempt kinda sucks. Still, I wanted to branch out a bit, and this seemed like a nice place to start! Also, I've just loved the idea of Lucina and Henry as a pairing ever since I thought of it, and seeing how I've yet to find anything on it, I do believe I'm the first to ever write something about them. Officially the rarest of pairs.**

 **Anyways, I'd love to hear what you thought of my first stab at a romance story, so I encourage you to drop a review and let me know!**


	2. Cawtiously Optimistic

_**Then**_

"You really didn't have to do this." Lucina muttered, looking over at Henry. Lanterns, caked in filth and grime, barely illuminated the interior of the tavern they were in, though Henry's smile was still clear as day. Lifting his bowl up, he took another hearty sip of his soup, sighing happily before setting it back down.

"Man, carrot soup is just the best! Can't be beat!" He exclaimed, much to the clear annoyance of the few patrons inside. It was only a few seconds later that he even seemed to register what Lucina had said to him. "Well sure I did, Marth! You were hungry, I had money to pay for a meal, you didn't. It's just common courtesy!" That seemed like a rather odd reason coming from this man, but she didn't comment on that. Instead, she just looked down to her own bowl of carrot soup, sighing.

"That's twice I owe you, now." Dejectedly, she took a sip of her own soup. It tasted awful, but it was the first thing she had since breakfast the day prior, so she continued to eat, nonetheless. Being a vagabond was rather inconvenient when it came to things such as regular meals, a warm bed, friends…

"Nah, only once. You saved my life too, remember? When you pushed me down and stopped me from getting my head chopped clean off!" Henry paused, humming. "Well, actually, I don't think it would've come clean off. Probably would've made it most of the way in and then gotten stuck on the spine. Then he would've yanked it back and gotten the veins all—"

Lucina held up a hand, indicating that he needed to stop, right now. Decapitations were certainly not a good subject to discuss while eating, even for someone who'd seen her fair share of awful sights. He seemed to get the hint, letting out an "ohhh" of realization before returning to his soup.

For a little while, there was silence between the two of them, one that allowed Lucina some time to reflect. It had been only a few months since the Plegian War had ended, since her mother and father had married, since Gangrel had been struck down, since Aunt Emmeryn had…since Lucina had failed to save her. Now, she was alone once again. The war had forced her to have a more direct involvement than she would have liked, but now that said involvement was no longer required, she realized just how much she enjoyed the interaction, as sparse as it was. Was her loneliness the reason why she was talking to Henry? Was she truly just that desperate to talk to someone?

It seemed impossible to find an answer to that question, and thankfully, Henry distracted her from it with a rather alarming question. "So, how're you related to the prince?" She froze, trying to process what he had just asked her. Then, she remembered that she no longer had her mask. It was surprisingly easy to forget, considering how she had almost never taken it off before it was destroyed. The Brand of the Exalt in her eye was hard to spot unless one knew what they were looking for, so she had become used to quick conversations that ended before anybody could take notice. Still, it proved that Henry was certainly more perceptive than he let on.

"Erm…" Lucina had already begun to open her mouth before thinking of what to say. She tried to stop and think, but as she grew more nervous, she just kept saying whatever came to mind. "Well, you see, I, uhm, I'm not exactly…ah, I mean to say, I'm sort of, not really, kind of…" Henry gave her a puzzled look, which only made her even more nervous. "I'm uh…a distant relative!" Finally, a proper cover. "Yes, I'm a very distant relative. No real claim to any of Prince Chrom's power. A few dozen people would have to die before the title of Exalt would fall on me. All I've got to show for it is this brand."

"Pretty neat brand, though!" Putting his elbows on the table, he rested his head on his hands. "I bet it draws all sorts of unwanted attention, right? Kidnappers, murderers, Grimleal…" A tinge of worry laced up her spine as she remembered Henry's clothing. Was he part of the Grimleal? "Good thing there aren't any of those around here!" With a giggle, he returned to gulping down the rest of his soup. At this point, she couldn't tell if he was saying things like this on purpose, or if he was truly unaware of the implications.

"Ah, well most people don't notice it. You're the first person I've met in a while who saw it so quickly." Henry seemed to take the compliment well, letting out a small hum of delight. Lucina looked back down to her soup, blinking in shock as she realized it was already all gone. Was she really that hungry? "Well, I must thank you again for your hospitality, Henry. However, I must be off."

Henry didn't complain, nor did he seem too broken up about it. Instead, he tilted his head, giving her a quizzical look. "Off to where?"

Trying not to sigh, Lucina hastily came up with another lie. "I've got important business near the southern coast. Due to this, I really mustn't waste any more time than I need to." Henry seemed to understand, nodding.

"Well, that makes sense. Though, aren't you out of funds?"

"Yes. And?"

"Doesn't that mean you won't be able to afford an inn?" Henry's question made Lucina wince as she realized that he was entirely right. "Or food?" Another wince. "Or general supplies? Or weapons, or medicines in case of injury, or—"

Lucina interrupted him, not wanting to hear more downsides to her current lack of money. "Alright, alright, I get it! Why do you ask? Are you suggesting something?" Henry nodded, his smile growing brighter.

"Mhm! See, as it so happens, I'm heading south as well. You were a heck of a fighter last night, so I wanna hire you as a bodyguard!" The idea was somewhat of a surprise to Lucina, who asked for clarification. "Well, you'd be draining the life out of two birds with one Nosferatu tome! You'd have a job where I would pay for meals, necessary equipment, the whole shebang! Not to mention I'd still give you a wage. You'd still be heading south as well. Meanwhile, I'll get a bodyguard to keep me from losing any limbs! Well, at least, any necessary ones. What do you say?"

The offer was tempting, she had to admit. Henry had paid for both their meals without a care in the world, so perhaps he was more well-off than he seemed. He definitely did seem like someone who needed some protection, considering how casually he had angered a group of brigands and how unfazed he had been after nearly dying. And of course, she definitely did need the money, as ashamed as she was to accept the fact.

Then there was Henry himself. He was a Plegian dark mage with a morbid sense of humor and seeming desensitization to any violence. Yet, he also had a smile that, while creepy, seemed genuine. He had saved her from brigands, paid for her meal, and was now offering her a job. She couldn't help but be both hesitant and curious to see more of him. "Alright. I'll work for you."

Clapping his hands, Henry stood up. "Great! I'm heading off tomorrow morning, so be ready by then. No dilly-dallying!" He fished through his coat pockets for a moment before pulling out a bag of coins. "Here's your down payment! See you tomorrow!" He walked away, out of the door before Lucina could say another word. Looking down at her now-cold bowl of carrot soup, she held her head in her hands, wondering what on earth she had just gotten herself into.

 _ **Now**_

"Aunt Lissa, I can explain." Staring her aunt in the eyes, Lucina tries to stop her from doing anything brash. "Really, I can. You see, I…" Oh gods, she has nothing. She can't think of an excuse. She's done for. "Well, it's actually a bit complicated." she admits, her shoulders slouching in defeat. Her aunt had seen Henry fight, she had gotten a decent idea of what he was like. And now she knows that he just kissed her niece.

After her long silence, Lissa finally speaks, her voice quiet. "You two are…are…" Lucina can't help but wince, trying to prepare herself for the inevitable blowout. Glancing to Henry, she sees that even he's worried, his smile having almost faded entirely. He rarely gets serious like this. He'd better not be thinking of cursing her.

Unfortunately for Lucina, that is exactly what Henry is thinking of doing. He mutters something under his breath, sending a dark wave of energy at Lissa. Before Lucina can even get a full word out, her aunt collapses into the bushes. "HENRY! I told you not to curse anyone!"

"It's alright, Lucy! I just made her take a nap. She could use it anyways, have you seen how tired she looks?" Henry's attempts to justify his actions lead him nowhere with Lucina, who puts her hands on her hips and glares at him. "Oh alright, I'm sorry. I can't un-curse her out of her sleep, so we'll just have to wait until she wakes up."

"And that'll be…"

Henry shrugs. "Anywhere from a couple of hours to ninety years, give or take. Curses are finicky, aren't they?" Seeing Lucina's furious expression, he holds his hands out. "Okay, fine, that was a joke. She'll be up in around an hour. That gives us time to think of a way to convince her to either stay quiet or believe that she was having a vivid dream!"

"Unfortunately, there is no 'us' here." Still scowling at Henry, Lucina rushes to check on her aunt, seeing that she indeed is simply fast asleep. Hoisting her up in her arms, she begins to walk back to the others. "You've caused more than enough damage for tonight. I'll handle this myself." He deflates, but she doesn't let that change her mind, even if his disheartened expression is making her want to, somewhat.

Henry takes his own, separate route back to the camp, leaving Lucina alone to ponder on what to do about her Aunt Lissa. The secret is going to come out at some point, but Lucina does greatly wish to hold that event back for a while. How much longer is a while, though? Whenever she tries to imagine the concept, she can't think of anything specific. Even vague ideas of how long escape her thoughts.

She hates how embarrassed she is by her relationship with Henry. She hates how the idea of it being discovered by others fills her with dread. She hates how she loves him so much, but not enough to be fine with people knowing just how much she loves him. She wants to reach the point where she's comfortable with letting it be known.

But she can't, not yet. That fact tears her up inside, only made worse by her knowing that Henry doesn't struggle with it at all. If it were up to him, there would be no secret. He doesn't understand what's so bad about people knowing. She supposes it's a bit unfair to compare herself to the man who thinks dismemberment is a perfectly valid topic to discuss in casual conversation, but she can't help comparing herself to him anyways.

"Lissa!?" Her mother's voice snaps her out of her thought. Robin rushes over to her, panicking as she sees an unconscious Lissa. "What happened? Was she injured in the fight? How long has she been like this?"

"I-it's alright, mother!" Lucina stammers out, her mother's panic fading slightly, replaced with confusion. "She's merely asleep. She just…" Her heart skips a beat as she realizes she didn't think of an explanation ahead of time. She's not good with making up lies on the spot, it's why she tried to avoid speaking with everyone as much as possible. "She just was exhausted from fighting!" Oh gods, what an awful excuse.

Her mother clearly isn't very convinced. "Really, now?" She brings a finger to her chin, humming for a moment. "I always tell her to save a little bit of energy, but she keeps giving it her all from the beginning to the end. I'm not sure if that's admirable or foolish. Either way, it's never been this bad before. She should rest up." Nervously nodding in agreement, Lucina hurries past her mother and into Lissa's tent, finding it empty. If her husband was here, that would have been another complication, but thankfully he stayed behind at the Halidom.

Laying her aunt down on her bedroll, Lucina lets out a long sigh, running her hands through her hair. Now, what to do about when Lissa wakes up? She deliberates claiming it was simply a dream, but she knows that even if Lissa believes it, it won't hold up for long. Any remote signs of affection between herself and Henry would immediately make her aunt suspicious. In that case, convincing her to keep the secret is the only option. How to do that, then?

"Mmh…huh…?" Lucina's heart skips a beat as her aunt begins to wake up, rubbing her eyes. "Lucina…? Oh, funny you're here. I just had—" She stops, yawning. "the strangest dream…you were in it, and so was that new guy with the ravens…"

"C-crows, actually." Lucina used to make the same mistake, but Henry made sure to teach her the intricate differences between the two types of birds. Now, she can tell the difference just from a glance. "And that wasn't actually a dream."

Still only half-awake, Lissa's eyelids flutter. "Oh." Then, realization hits her like a bag of bricks. "OH MY—" Lucina swiftly places a hand over her aunt's mouth, silencing her before she can attract any unwanted attention. "Mmfr mhf mfhy!?"

"Aunt Lissa, please whisper!" It almost comes across as begging, but Lucina feels like she's about to beg if it has to come to that. After a moment, Lissa nods in acceptance, and she slowly and warily removes her hand.

"You're with _Henry_!?" Lissa exclaims in a hushed voice. "Wait, but he's like, kinda weird, isn't he? I mean, I didn't see much of him, but from what I did see, he was pretty wacky."

"Yes, he is…wacky." Hesitating, Lucina groans, already starting to feel a headache come on. "And cute, and funny, and actually very nice and kind when you get to know him! So, taking that into consideration, I'd be grateful to you if you didn't mention this to anyone."

"Wait, you mean you haven't told anyone!?" Lissa's bewilderment is only heightened when Lucina shakes her head. "Chrom? Robin? Literally anyone?"

"I'm…going to. Just not right now. I mean, just look at how you've reacted! If I told mother and father, I'm not sure how they'd handle it. We can't afford that right now, not when there's so much at stake." Lissa seems somewhat convinced by this, but Lucina can tell that she's still on the fence. "Just trust me, please. I'll do anything if it means you'll stay silent."

That catches Lissa's attention. "Aaaaanything?" She starts smirking, something she only ever did when she was planning something that someone wouldn't like. Lucina's hesitant to affirm, but she nods, hoping this hasn't sealed her fate. "Alright! Then from now on, you are no longer allowed to call me Aunt Lissa!"

"…What?" What does she mean by that? Is Lucina going to have to call her some embarrassing nickname now? Oh gods, Lissa is the best at coming up with embarrassing nicknames.

"Not another word of this 'aunt' stuff. It makes me feel like an old lady!" Lissa points at Lucina, frowning. "From now on, just call me Lissa. If you promise to do that, then I'll keep your secret. Sound fair?" It does actually sound rather fair. Now that she thinks about it, she realizes that not everybody is likely as comfortable with this sort of thing as father is.

Lucina gives her aunt a nod, smiling. "Of course. That sounds completely fair." Unable to contain her excitement, she wraps Lissa in a tight hug. "Thank you so much! I promise, you won't regret it Aun—" She stops, clearing her throat. "Uh, Lissa."

Lissa laughs at that, seeming to be fine with the hug. "Yeah, yeah. Just make sure he isn't secretly some total creep or something. That's what Chrom's told me since I was little as his number one dating tip."

"I think he might've just been trying to get you to avoid tying the knot for as long as possible." The two girls laugh at that as Lucina pulls away, the stress and anxiety she had previously felt now draining out of her.

"Yeah, well, I wasn't gonna let anything prevent me from finding my true love! Even if that meant dealing with him avoiding me like the plague for months. I mean, the first thing he ever said to me was 'away, woman!'" For the last part, Lissa speaks in a gruff, burly voice that makes Lucina burst into laughter.

The two of them chats for a while longer before Lucina excuses herself, stepping out and looking for her tent. Once she finds it, she peeks in only to find Henry already sitting down inside, giving her a friendly smile. "Henry, you _do_ realize we're supposed to be in separate tents, right?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah! I know. I just wanted to make sure you were doing alright." Oh, what a big softie. She sits down next to him, resting her head on her shoulder. "Did everything go alright with your aunt?"

"Mhm." Lucina closes her eyes, just enjoying the feeling of being with him for a moment. "I convinced her not to tell anyone, so our secret's safe for now. Still, we won't be able to have many moments like this anymore." Lifting her head back up, she gets into her bedspread, sighing. "I'm utterly drained. Who would've thought today would go the way it did?"

Henry plops down next to her, holding his hands behind his head. "I know, right? The fighting, the drama, the intrigue, it was awesome!" Not what Lucina meant, but she wasn't about to rain on his parade.

"Hey, Henry…I'm sorry about how I acted earlier. I was just stressed, but even then, I shouldn't have taken it out on you." She scoots a little closer, and he closes the rest of the gap in response, the two of them each now pressed against the other's side. She knows that he isn't the type to hold grudges, but she feels the need to apologize regardless.

"Aw, don't worry about it! Water under the bridge. Besides, I should be apologizing for cursing your aunt. She seems like a pretty nice lady." They both lay like that for a while, just enjoying eachother's company. Eventually, Henry gives her a kiss on the cheek, then starts to sit up. "Well, I'd better head off to my tent." Lucina grabs his arm, stopping him.

"Could you stay? Just until I fall asleep." Is she asking too much of him? After all, he's probably just as exhausted as she is, and he'll have to wait to sleep until she is. Still, she wants him to be here, regardless of how selfish that is. Henry doesn't even hesitate, laying right back down. She rests her head on his shoulder, smiling warmly as she closes her eyes. "Thanks, Henry. You're the best…"

"Not a problem. You know, I could curse you to have good dreams, if you want."

"And end up having a nightmare like the last time you tried? No way."

"Hey, it's only a fifteen percent chance!"

"That's fifteen percent higher of a risk than I'm willing to take." Lucina can't help but giggle at how earnest he is about helping her. Even if his risk assessment is a bit laxer than hers, she knows he means well. That's what she loves most about him, after all. She starts to drift off to sleep, the sound of Henry's idle humming helping her along the way. "Goodnight, Henry…"

"Goodnight, Lucy." It isn't long before Lucina falls asleep, dreaming of a bright sunrise casting warmth upon her face. Of course, she won't find out until tomorrow that the pleasant dream was thanks to Henry taking the liberty of putting the curse on her anyways. He'll be in a world of trouble when that happens, but for now, she slumbers away, having the best night of sleep she's had in a long while.


	3. Winging It

_**Then**_

As it turned out, Henry hadn't been paying Lucina all that money for nothing. He seemed to have a habit of angering the wrong people, resulting in him and her fighting off assassins, barbarians, cravens, degenerates, all the way to zealots of Grima. All just to get to the southern coast. All just to find Cynthia. Lucina had heard a rumor about an eccentric Pegasus knight in the area who was asking every person she could find if they knew where Prince Chrom was. Not exactly the best way to avoid rousing suspicion. Still, at least it meant Lucina could have an easier time finding her.

Hearing that this Pegasus knight had apparently headed west a while ago was expected, but still no less devastating to hear. For once, just once, Lucina hoped she would be able to reunite with one of her friends. Hell, she'd even take Inigo and his endless flirting at this point. Instead, she was stuck with the slightly crazy dark mage who sometimes seemed as if he was trying to get himself killed. Once, he'd even told her that he wanted to die in the craziest, most spectacular way imaginable. Not very comforting to know the man you're in charge of protecting actually has a death wish.

Still, for every time Henry acted like a madman, there was another time that he was strangely pleasant to be around. Even now, he was browsing for fruits in the seaside town's market, striking up conversations with the shopkeepers about remarkably mundane affairs. He asked the fruit saleswoman about how great the sea breeze was, he got into a friendly debate with the innkeeper about wine versus ale, and he even managed to rope Lucina into a chat with a blacksmith about whether strength or speed was ideal for a blade. Moments like these were nice, she had to admit.

As it turned out, all of those friendly conversations got Henry quite a few favorable discounts, leaving the two of them with plenty of money in their shopping budget leftover. Lucina suggested saving it for a rainy day, but he insisted they should treat themselves. It wasn't exactly like she could say no to him about what he was buying with his own money, and she was far too polite to reject the gift of money from him to buy something she wanted.

"Hey Marth, how's this look?" Henry held up a rather absurd-looking hat, even by Lucina's standards. It was pointed upwards with two feathers sticking out from front and back, one pink and the other green. "I betcha this would be a great way to make yourself stand out. We could stick it on some random guy and use him as bait for enemies!"

"Or we could not endanger the life of an innocent person. Or buy that garish hat." Henry seemed to ignore Lucina's sarcasm, trying on the hat and inspecting himself in a mirror, letting out a lot of "ooh"s and "ahh"s. She decided to keep looking around the clothing store they were in, more interested in the more combat-oriented outfits. She had heard skirts were great for maneuverability, but she always felt a bit too exposed in one whenever she was out on the battlefield. Still, the brown one she found seemed like it would be good for a more casual occasion. If those even existed anymore for her.

She stole a quick glance over at Henry, silently admitting to herself that he looked a bit charming in that hat, in a silly sort of way. His unbridled enthusiasm went a long way towards that, of course, but there was no denying that he was quite attractive with his boyish features and cute smile. In an objective way, of course! Gods, she really needed to find a boyfriend someday, if just to realign her sense of standards to something more sensible. Not to say that finding Henry unattractive wasn't sensible, it was natural for her to appreciate his features, but…ah, what was she even thinking? She tried to refocus on shopping, eventually happening upon a rather dazzling silver locket, hollowed out to make space for something of her choice. It was at quite the steep price, certainly above the amount of money she could spend.

"What's up?" Henry's voice came from right behind Lucina, nearly giving her a heart attack. Instead of cackling as he usually would, he seemed genuinely concerned. "Oh, did I startle you? Jeez, I'm sorry! I guess I can be a bit too quiet for my own good, huh?" She couldn't tell if he said that out of irony or not. It was hard to tell if he meant just about anything he said sometimes. Though, she was starting to get a bit better at telling the difference. "What'cha looking at?" Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed the locket from the shelf it was sitting on, twirling it around in his hand.

"That's, um…it's nothing. I was just looking." Despite her dismissal, he continued to look at the locket, opening it up as if there was going to be something inside. She turned away, looking at the entrance to the shop. "We should go. I didn't find anything I wanted, so we can just put what you gave me back into our funds." When she turned back to look at him, he was gone. A quick scan of the shop showed that he was at the front desk, handing some money to the clerk in exchange for the locket. "Wait, Henry wait!" Too late. He cheerily walked back to her and handed her the locket. "Henry, you shouldn't have bought that. It was a waste of our funds!"

"But…you wanted it?" The dark mage was legitimately confused as to why this was such an issue.

"That's beside the point. You've been spending far too frivolously for your own good. How are we supposed to afford the essentials if we waste our money on trinkets?" Perhaps she was being a bit mean about it. It _was_ a beautiful locket, after all. But she wanted Henry to start thinking more practically about his budget.

"But you don't even have to worry. You're leaving, right?" Henry tilted his head. "I mean, we got south. You brought me here safe and sound. Your job's over." He was right. She had completely forgotten that they had only been traveling together due to a common destination. And now that they were here, what reason did she have to stay with him? She had earned plenty of gold from working for him, after all. She'd be fine on her own.

So why was she hesitant? "I, er, don't have to leave just yet. Neither of us have anywhere pressing to be for the next few days, after all. So we might as well stick together until then, right?" Henry looked surprised by that; was he upset? Was he looking forward to being alone again? No, she was overthinking things. He probably just expected the two of them to split off at this point. Hopefully he didn't _hope_ that.

"Oh, okay then!" Well, Henry was once again proving himself to either be a master liar or one of the least bothered people to ever live. "I suppose I won't be leaving town for a few days, so we can hang out until then." He seemed to have no problem going with the flow, as always. "But first, here." He held the locket by its chain, handing it to Lucina. She hesitantly held her hands out, letting him place it in her palm, closing his hand around her own for a brief moment.

In that moment, Lucina's heart beat especially hard. Henry was giving her another one of those happy-go-lucky smiles as his hand was wrapping ever so gently around her own, and it made her feel happy in a way she hadn't felt in a long time. This strange feeling confused her, even scared her, but she didn't want it to go away. Realizing that she had been holding his hand for a little too long, she cleared her throat and pulled her hand away, still grasping the locket. "T-thank you, Henry."

"Mhm! Say, I heard there's a butcher's shop around here! Wanna go see how he chops up the meat?" And the moment was gone, replaced by the mental image of raw meat being carved up by a cleaver. Still, she supposed it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. It would be nice to let him see what he wants to see, even if it was something so odd.

"Oh, why not? Let's see if we can find one." Lucina couldn't help but smile through her exasperation. As Henry ran out of the store, distracted by the prospects of finding a butcher's shop, she quickly put the locket around her neck, rubbing her thumb over it for a moment before following after him.

 _ **Now**_

Lucina and Lissa watch Henry from a distance as he hangs up laundry on a clothesline, humming to himself. Somehow, Frederick had figured out that he was actually great at handling laundry. Even Lucina didn't know about that, but she's certainly going to take advantage now. Lissa leans close to her, whispering. "So, how good of a kisser is he?"

"That's, um…" Lucina tries to hide the blush creeping onto her face. "That's not exactly an appropriate question, Lissa." She returns to her own chore, chopping up vegetables for tonight's stew. Lissa is _supposed_ to be helping her, but she seems more intent on observing Henry. "Could you pass me a few potatoes?"

"Oh, sure." Lissa grabs a few potatoes and set them in front of Lucina, who gets to work chopping them up. "Did you two go on any dates, or did you just kinda become a couple?"

"It just…happened, I suppose. One day we were traveling companions, and the next day we were a couple."

"That is the lamest cop-out I've ever heard. C'mon, tell me the juicy story! I bet it was so romantic!" Stars seem to appear in Lissa's eyes as she daydreams her idea of how the confession went. Lucina doesn't want to admit the less-than-romantic truth of how it happened, so she lets her aunt keep dreaming. "Was it in a field of flowers? Ooh, or by a waterfall? Nono, wait, it had to have been at a lake, right?"

"My secret." A playful grin from Lucina tells Lissa that her lips were sealed. "Now get to chopping. You've gotta do your part, too."

"Boo." Lissa pouts dramatically, trying to chop her vegetables with the same level of skill Lucina is demonstrating. "How did you get so gosh darn good at chopping vegetables? Were you just born a chef or something?"

"Oh, I wish. I had to learn the hard way, just like you. You pick up skills like these when you spend so much time traveling in the wild." To demonstrate, Lucina quickly slices a potato into numerous thin slices, sliding them off the table and into a bag of chopped vegetables meant for dinner. "And you get used to eating some questionable meals. Henry loves carrot soup for some reason, which means we ate a lot of that. It took me a good few months until I could properly stomach it."

"And I can't even eat a few bites of bear meat," Lissa says with a giggle.

Lucina chuckles. "Oh no, I still can't stand bear meat. I've no idea how mother can enjoy it so much. One of life's great mysteries, I suppose."

"I don't even think Miriel could solve that one. The compatibility between Robin and bear meat is truly a conundrum for the ages." The two of them laugh at that for a while, eventually getting back to cutting up vegetables. As they reach their quota, Lissa gives Lucina one last question. "So, you two have done it, right?"

Lucina's face goes as red as the beet she just finished chopping. "T-that is not a question I feel comfortable answering! And it is certainly not a question you should even be asking!"

"Aww, c'mon! You can trust me!"

"This is not a matter of trust! This is a matter of privacy!"

"Oh my gosh, you've totally done it, haven't you?"

"Lissa!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Lissa is giggling up a storm at this point. Sighing, Lucina walks away, having finished her chores up anyways. She glances over at Henry, who gives her a friendly wave before getting back to hanging up laundry. As she gives him a wave back, she can't help but sigh again, this one much happier. Sure, dealing with aunt Lissa's constant questioning will be a hassle, but at least her secret is safe.

Lucina heads over to Henry for a quick chat. "Hey Luci! What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much. Lissa keeps trying to get me to tell her all of our secrets."

"Well, I hope you didn't say too much." Henry hangs a large white shirt up on the clothesline. Lucina glances back at camp, then at the shirt, realizing that it's provided a convenient barrier between the two of them and the others. Taking advantage of the opportunity, she leans forward and gives him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Oh, nothing too revealing." Lucina's little tease actually manages to make Henry blush a bit, something that she considers a job well done. "Better get back to the laundry. I'll be down at the river by camp, in case you finish early." He can't seem to figure out how to respond, taken aback by her teasing. Fair enough, she supposes; it's not like she's one to tease like this very often. Usually, he's the one embarrassing her.

As Lucina heads to the river, she finds herself holding the locket around her neck, rubbing her thumb over the silver just like when she had first found it. She gently opened it, looking at the ring inside. Once this war is finally over, she'll be able to put it to good use. Assuming Henry doesn't get down on his knees with a ring of his own, first. Is she really ready for something like that, though? She loves him, but something like an engagement is a big step forward. She closes the locket, deciding to keep thinking on it. Slow and steady isn't exactly a bad thing, anyway. Right?

At the river, Lucina sits down and watches the water flow by, listening to the birds chirping and the wind blowing through the trees. Eventually, the sound of cracking twigs tells her that someone is coming. "Oh, Henry! You sure took your time." She stands up, looking over at where the sound is coming from. The smile on her face fades when she realizes that the person approaching isn't Henry.

A girl with soft brown pigtails steps out of the foliage, looking at Lucina with utter shock. Lucina finds herself giving the same expression. She's spent two years looking for her friends. Two years looking high and low, trying to find even a trace of them. And here Cynthia is, having stumbled into her.

Two more people emerge behind her; brigands, judging by the looks of them. One of them looks at Cynthia and grins. "Well, ain't you something? You brought us right to these fiends. I'm proud of you!" His sinister tone tells Lucina that he certainly is up to no good.

"Thank you, Chrom! But…" Chrom? Wait, what? Cynthia points at Lucina. "That girl is a friend. She must've gotten involved with the wrong kind of people! If we talk to her, I bet we could work something out!" Oh no. Oh, Cynthia no. She did it again. She was always a bit of an airhead and wasn't great at remembering faces, but Lucina never thought she would've made this significant of a blunder. She actually thinks this man is Chrom.

"Oh, Cynthia," the man says with a shake of his head. "If someone is willing to join such a vile group, then clearly she's beyond saving. She'll stab you in the back the moment you let your guard down."

Lucina tries to interrupt. "Cynthia, wait! You're being tricked! That man isn't my father!" Cynthia's eyes widen at that. She knows that if anybody would recognize Chrom, it would be Lucina. Unfortunately, the brigand seems to realize her new awareness of the situation, and grabs his axe from his belt, attempting to take a swing at her. She stumbles away before the attack can land, sprinting over to Lucina. "Cynthia, stay behind me." Unsheathing Falchion, Lucina readies herself for battle.

"Ohmygods Luci, I am SOSO sorry!" Cynthia already looks like she's about to cry. "I thought he was Chrom and then he said that there was a group of bandits nearby and so I was supposed to find them and it turns out the bandits were you guys but I didn't realize it was you guys so I brought them here and then you told me the truth and now I feel so bad and I can't believe I was dumb enough to fall for it please please please forgive me—" Lucina has to put her hand on the Pegasus knight's mouth to get her to stop talking.

As the two brigands approach, Lucina's mind flashes back to the night she and Henry first met. Why is it that every time she meets someone important, it's in the middle of a fight? Well, no point in asking that now. She shifts her feet in the dirt, planting herself in a stable position, and as the brigands attack, she raises Falchion, ready to strike back.


End file.
